The culture of India has been shaped by its long history, unique geography, diverse

demographics and the absorption of customs, traditions and ideas from some of its neighbours as
well as by preserving its ancient heritages, which were formed during the Indus Valley
Civilization and evolved further during the Vedic age, rise and decline of Buddhism, Golden age,
Muslim conquests and European colonization.
India's great diversity of religious practices, languages, customs, and traditions are examples of
this unique co-mingling over the past five millennia. The various religions and traditions of India
that were created by these amalgamations have influenced other parts of the world too.

Contents
[hide]
• 1 Religion
• 2 Society
○ 2.1 Overview
○ 2.2 Family
○ 2.3 Animals
○ 2.4 Namaste
○ 2.5 Festivals
• 3 Cuisine
• 4 Clothing
• 5 Literature
○ 5.1 History
○ 5.2 Poetry
○ 5.3 Epics
• 6 Performing arts
○ 6.1 Music
○ 6.2 Dance
○ 6.3 Drama and theater
• 7 Visual arts
○ 7.1 Painting
○ 7.2 Sculpture
○ 7.3 Architecture
• 8 Recreation and sports
• 9 Popular media
○ 9.1 Television
○ 9.2 Cinema
 • 10 See also
• 11 References
• 12 Further reading
• 13 External links
Main articles: Religion in India and Indian religions

India is the birth place of Dharmic religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism.
[2]
Dharmic religions, also known as Indian religions, is a major form of world religions next to
the Abrahamic ones. Today, Hinduism and Buddhism are the world's third- and fourth-largest
religions respectively, with around 1.4 billion followers altogether.
India is one of the most religiously diverse nations in the world, with some of the most deeply
religious societies and cultures. Religion still plays a central and definitive role in the life of most
of its people.
The religion of more than 80.4% of the people is Hinduism. Islam is practiced by around 13.4%
of all Indians.[3] Sikhism, Jainism and especially Buddhism are influential not only in India but
across the world. Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Judaism and the Bahá'í Faith are also influential
but their numbers are smaller. Despite the strong role of religion in Indian life, atheism and
agnostics also have visible influence along with a self-ascribed tolerance to other faiths.
[edit] Society
[edit] Overview
According to Eugene M. Makar, the traditional Indian culture is defined by relatively strict social
hierarchy. He also mentions that from an early age, children are reminded of their roles and
places in society.[4] This is reinforced by the fact that many believe gods and spirits have integral
and functional role in determining their life.[4] Several differences such as religion divide culture.
[4]
However, far more powerful division is the traditional Hindu bifurcation into non-polluting
and polluting occupations.[4] Strict social taboos have governed these groups for thousands of
years.[4] In recent years, particularly in cities, some of these lines have blurred and sometimes
even disappeared.[4] Nuclear family is becoming central to Indian culture. Important family
relations extend to as far as gotra, the mainly patrilinear lineage or clan assigned to a Hindu at
birth.[4] In rural areas it is common that three or four generations of the family live under the
same roof.[4] Patriarch often resolves family issues.[4]
Among developing countries, India has low levels of occupational and geographic mobility.
People choose same occupations as their parents and rarely move geographically in the society.[5]
During the nationalist movement, pretentious behavior was something to be avoided. Egalitarian
behaviour and social service were promoted while nonessential spending was disliked and
spending money for ‘showing off’ was deemed a vice. This image continues in politics with
many politicians wearing simple looking / traditionally rural clothes.
Family
Main articles: Hindu joint family, Arranged marriage in India, and Women in India
A bride during a traditional Punjabi Hindu wedding ceremony.

India for ages has had a prevailing tradition of the joint family system. It’s a system under which
even extended members of a family like one’s parents, children, the children’s spouses and their
offspring, etc. live together. The elder-most, usually the male member is the head in the joint
Indian family system who makes all important decisions and rules, whereas other family
members abide by it.
Arranged marriages have the tradition in Indian society for centuries. Even today, overwhelming
majority of Indians have their marriages planned by their parents and other respected family-
members, with the consent of the bride and groom.[6] Arranged matches were made after taking
into account factors such as age, height, personal values and tastes, the backgrounds of their
families (wealth, social standing) and their castes and the astrological compatibility of the
couples' horoscopes.
In India, the marriage is thought to be for life[7], and the divorce rate is extremely low — 1.1%
compared with about 50% in the United States.[8] The arranged marriages generally have a much
lower divorce rate. The divorce rates have risen significantly in recent years:
"Opinion is divided over what the phenomenon means: for traditionalists the
rising numbers portend the breakdown of society while, for some modernists,
they speak of a healthy new empowerment for women."[9]

Although child marriage was outlawed in 1860, it is continued to be practiced in some rural parts
of India.[10] According to UNICEF’s “State of the World’s Children-2009” report, 47% of India's
women aged 20–24 were married before the legal age of 18, with 56% in rural areas.[11] The
report also showed that 40% of the world's child marriages occur in India.[12]
Indian names are based on a variety of systems and naming conventions, which vary from region
to region. Names are also influenced by religion and caste and may come from religion or epics.
India's population speaks a wide variety of languages.
Although women and men are equal before the law and the trend toward gender equality has
been noticeable, women and men still occupy distinct functions in Indian society.Woman's role
in the society is often to perform household works and pro bono community work[4]. This low
rate of participation has ideological and historical reasons. Women and women's issues appear
only 7-14% of the time in news programs.[4] In most Indian families, women do not own any
property in their own names, and do not get a share of parental property.[13] Due to weak
enforcement of laws protecting them, women continue to have little access to land and property.
[14]
In many families, especially rural ones, the girls and women face nutritional discrimination
within the family, and are anaemic and malnourished.[13] They still lag behind men in terms of
income and job status. Traditional Hindu art, such as Rangoli (or Kolam), is very popular among
Indian women. Popular and influential woman's magazines include Femina, Grihshobha and
Woman's Era.